In November, the Dutch government suspended the “experimental scheme” which looked to cap capacity in order to minimise noise pollution. Towards the end of 2023, Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport (AMS) shared the news that with the cuts scrapped, it will be allowing 483,000 flights in 2024.

Royal Schiphol Group Executive Director Operations, Patricia Vitalis, said:

“At the request of the minister, we reviewed what was operationally possible after the experimental scheme was taken off the table. More flights are now possible, but this is only safe and responsible provided we reduce pressure on certain peak hours.

The busy peak times require a major effort from the entire aviation sector and the involved government partners. In order to offer travellers a pleasant and safe journey, we really need each other at the airport.

We’ve discussed this with each other a lot over the past weeks, and everyone is aware of that. It’s good to see that airlines have committed to helping reduce peak traffic.”

A representative from KLM said:

“We are pleased about this. Stable, predictable operations are vital for customers and employees, who understandably expect this from us.

We now have scarcely three months to make the necessary arrangements instead of the usual six. KLM will obviously do everything possible to operate the number of flights it has been allocated.”

The airport is reportedly now working with airlines to implement voluntary reductions in the number of flights during peak times.

The back and forth around these proposed flight cuts had sparked conversation around the role government will play as we move forward. The Financial Times previously described AMS’s planned cuts as “a litmus test of the ability of governments to try to limit flying to tackle climate change.”

 

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